"For over two decades, my artistic practice has been rooted in encaustic and pigment sticks—mediums that invite depth, texture, and a sense of the unexpected. I often work with unconventional materials such as tar, ash, marble dust, oil, dry media, graphite, rubber, handmade paper, and other mixed media, embracing their tactile and expressive possibilities. Recently, I’ve begun exploring the fusion of painting and ceramics, integrating clay into my surfaces to further push the boundaries of material and form and break out of the square. At the heart of my work is the ritual of layering. I’m drawn to the experience of working with wax—the movement, the scent, the unpredictability—and the ways in which scraping, carving, and building surfaces create both history and presence within each piece. I am mostly interested in the marriage of image and medium, where process and subject coalesce. Much of my work evokes a sense of place, inspired by the elemental meeting of sky, sand, and sea. Recurring themes include houses, boats, birds, and flowers—especially tulips and amaryllis. Most recently, dogs have also emerged as a meaningful presence in my work." Cherie Mittenthal holds an MFA from Purchase College, State University of New York, and a BFA from the Hartford Art School at the University of Hartford. She has served as Executive Director of the Truro Center for the Arts at Castle Hill since 2002 and is the Director of the International Encaustic Conference, now in its 18th year, held annually in Provincetown, MA, each June. Cherie is actively involved in the local arts community, serving on the boards of the Provincetown Cultural Council and the Outer Cape Artist Residency Coalition (OCARC). She maintains a studio in Provincetown, where she lives with her two Bedlington Terriers.